ENGLISH VERSION
the current research is focused on the development of new materials, the problem is that the human body has to assimilate and accept them and one of the biggest issues associated with these materials is precisely the rejection», stresses Maria Blanes, Head of the research group of Technical Finishing, Health and Environment at AITEX. That is why, in her opinion, research should not be limited to discovering these new materials that can change everything, but to know how to implement them in different applications for them to be really useful.
Technologies Big Data Massive data capture that, because of its huge volume, cannot be treated and collected with traditional tools. Machine Learning Automatic learning or machine learning is the subfield of computer science and a branch of artificial intelligence whose aim is to develop techniques that allow computers and machines to learn. 3D print Is a group of additive manufacturing technologies where a three-dimensional object is created by adding layers of material in a printer through an electronic file. Improvement of medical image
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The health area is a growing market that gives great opportunities to textiles, since, because of the way they are used (in close and constant contact with the skin) they are positioned in a privileged place to operate as active agents for the user’s health. AITEX investigates, in each case, new textiles in this sector, with a better performance, meeting the requirements for each specific use. Thus, in the case of implants in areas such as bones, joints or areas with a low vascularization, rejection rates are much lower than in others with a greater blood flow, such as heart, skin or mouth. Therefore, the Head of AITEX makes a call for calm ensuring that there is still a long way to go in this area: «There are many items made up of new materials tested in cells or in vitro and when tested on the animal model they do not work because the development is not the same». And even critical areas transplant patients have still to be taking medication for a long time not to generate rejection, which involves important side effects. Therefore, in her opinion, the key is the work with nanofiber veils through electro-spinning which serve not only to regenerate tissue but also as a drug dosage vehicle in a controlled and personalized way. In this line, tissue regeneration also plays an important role in the research of the medicine of the future. Tissue regeneration through nanofibers of different types of fabrics is indeed one of AITEX’ main fields of action. Work is being carried out for its application in major burns, ulcers, myocardial infarction, and to prevent stent rejection, placed in case of veins obstruction. «This technology allows us to encapsulate or protect active compounds that oxidize easily or deteriorate», explains Blanes. Thus, if
these compounds are encapsulated, they can be applied directly where the condition is, treating it in a very controlled way and dosing them per day and hour, making the most of the drug application. This way, impregnation of textiles with supercritical fluids makes it possible to produce, in an economically feasible and environmentally sustainable manner, products such as multifunctional active gauze or dressings with beneficial effects on the skin. The Cosmetosup II project, in which AINIA and AITEX have participated with the support from IVACE and Feder Funds, has applied the advantages of supercritical CO2 to get to extract substances with bioactive properties of natural raw materials, such as rosehip and rosemary, in the same process, and to incorporate them into textile materials to provide them with new features. With the incorporation of bioactive substances into textiles, useful materials can be obtained for the manufacturing of new products, for example, dressings and gauze, surgical drapes and hygienic wipes with favorable effects on the skin in daily care, in the healing process of wounds, burns, etc, as Sara Fernandez of AINIA explains.
Improving logistics The optimization of medical logistics is also an important part of the medicine of the future. Improving processes such as drug delivery requires proper and up-to-date systems. «It is not so complex as transplants’ distribution», says the ITI representative, but we must take restrictions into account, times and windows and, to do so, leading distribution and management algorithms, even at geographic
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